Photo: Konstantin Bazhenov in the prison visiting room during a lawyer's visit. Dimitrovgrad. 27 February 2020

Photo: Konstantin Bazhenov in the prison visiting room during a lawyer’s visit. Dimitrovgrad. 27 February 2020

Photo: Konstantin Bazhenov in the prison visiting room during a lawyer’s visit. Dimitrovgrad. 27 February 2020

Unjust Verdicts

The Court left Konstantin Bazhenov, convicted for his faith, in prison, despite meeting requirements for a release

Saratov Region,   Ulyanovsk Region

On October 28 judge of Dimitrovgrad city court Dmitry Russky refused to soften the sentence of Jehovah's Witness Konstantin Bazhenov convicted for 3.5 years of colony and to replace the part of term not completed with a fine. The defense will appeal against this decision.

"Unfortunately, to some extent Konstantin and I expected such a decision," said Irina Bazhenova, Konstantin's wife, after the trial, implying that under conditions of repressions against Russian Jehovah's Witnesses, courts can easily ignore the exemplary behavior of believers in places of detention.

According to Yaroslav Sivulsky, a representative of the European Jehovah's Witnesses Association, the reason for the court's refusal was the fact that the believer is on the preventive record as "a person convicted of extremist activity". "All Jehovah's Witnesses convicted of faith automatically receive this status, which deliberately puts them in a vulnerable position. Also, despite the positive characterization from the colony, the correctional facility and the prosecutor did not support the request to release the believer for unclear reasons," Sivulsky said.

To this day, Konstantin Bazhenov has served four fifths or more than 80% of the sentence imposed by the court. In addition, as the lawyer of the believer said on the eve of the trial, "Konstantin ... has various awards, behaves respectfully and correctly towards the staff of the penitentiary system, is not in conflict, is an exemplary family man".

Konstantin Bazhenov, 45, has been in Dimitrovgrad penal colony since February 2020. In September 2019 a court found Konstantin and five of his fellow believers guilty of extremism for not giving up their peaceful religious beliefs.

Case of Bazhenov and Others in Saratov

Case History
In September 2019, Judge Dmitry Larin immediately sent 6 Saratov residents to prison for a term of 2 to 3.5 years just for reading the Bible, singing songs and praying. Since 2017, security forces have been conducting covert surveillance of believers. In the summer of 2018, their homes were searched with banned literature planted. While the investigation was underway, they had to go to a pre-trial detention center, under house arrest and under recognizance not to leave. A year later, despite the absence of victims in the case, the believers were found guilty. Upon arrival at the Orenburg colony, 5 out of 6 convicted believers were beaten by the staff of the institution. Mahammadiev was hospitalized, and the rest were placed in a punishment cell for a while. Saratov prisoners of conscience have mastered various professions in prison. In May 2020, Mahammadiev and Bazhenov were stripped of their Russian citizenship and, after their release, deported from Russia. All 6 believers have already served their sentences. In September 2022, the cassation court dismissed the complaint, and the verdict and the appellate ruling were unchanged.
Timeline

Persons in case

Criminal case

Region:
Saratov Region
Locality:
Saratov
Suspected of:
according to the investigation, together with others he conducted religious services, which is interpreted as “organising the activity of an extremist organisation” (with reference to the decision of the Russian Supreme Court on the liquidation of all 396 registered organisations of Jehovah’s Witnesses)
Court case number:
11807630001000037
Initiated:
June 9, 2018
Current case stage:
the verdict entered into force
Investigating:
Investigative Department of the Directorate of the FSB of Russia for the Saratov Region
Articles of Criminal Code of Russian Federation:
282.2 (1)
Court case number:
1-333/2019
Case History
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